Broadband data distribution systems are a popular way to deliver data to and receive data from a large number of buildings or residences in a geographic area. Examples of such systems are cable modem networks, fiber optic networks, and power system carrier signal distribution. For the example of cable modem systems, typically a head end unit such as a cable modem termination system (CMTS) is connected by coax cable to multiple (often several hundred) terminating cable modems for end users. The CMTS typically uses a protocol such as IP (Internet Protocol) to route data packets to specific cable modems on the cable data network.
Data transmitted over any type of transmission medium is subject to noise, which can reduce the data throughput. Many techniques are used to reduce transmission errors caused by noise. One technique is known as interleaving, in which data sent from a CMTS to one or more specific cable modems (CMs) is interleaved with data for other CMs. Such interleaving can reduce data loss due to burst noise, and is defined by the Data Over Cable Service Interface Specifications (DOCSIS), which specify cable modem requirements for data delivery. Currently the interleave depth (which defines the amount of data interleaving) is determined and statically set by the CMTS for all devices downstream from the CMTS.
But statically setting the interleave depth for an entire cable data network may not be optimal for all the CMs. Higher interleave depths cause every device to have an increased latency which may not be necessary for most of the devices. Lower interleave depths reduce latency, but may result in an unacceptably high level of unrecoverable packets due to burst noise for a subset of CMs.